Living in a house of cards
by MOTHMAN VASQUEZ
Summary: Chastity finds herself with an inscrutable gift. Her father was the only person in the world that knew how to use it. Except for Criss Angel of course. Can he help her learn to use it and complete her destiny? Or will the power be to much for her to take?
1. I promise daddy

People always tell me that I'm strange. Never weird or odd. Just strange. My dad once called me unique, when I was six. That was when people started calling me strange. My dad always told me I special and no matter what anybody said I should always embrace the gift god gave me. I'm still wondering, at sixteen, what gift he was talking about. Nothing good has happened to me since I was ten. My dad died of cancer six years ago. That night frequently creeps into my dreams making me awake in a cold sweat every time. Sleep has become my worst nightmare.

My mother has been less than supportive of every thing I've ever done in my life, even before my father died. She always told me that what I had was not a gift, but a curse. She told me that when I discovered it to never let it out. This made me even more confused. Why did my dad want me to embrace if it was so bad, and why did my mother want me to disregard if it made me so special? I tried asking questions but I never got a straight answer. I decided to give up trying at 14.

I was an outcast at school. Still am but now I have my friend Rosalina "Ross" Sarantakos. She moved here, Long Island, when we were both 15. On her first day of school she sat down next to me at lunch. It seems like I'm making a big deal out of something small but nobody ever wanted to sit with me before. She was the first person I've ever met, excluding my father, who love magic as much as I did.

My father taught me minor parlor tricks when I was a child. Nothing major just coin and easy disappearing acts. When I hit 10 I wanted to know more than just that. It wasn't just childish curiosity, it was stronger. When ever my dad would take me to a magic show I would get a feeling. Almost like a magnetic pull. I wanted to do what the person on stage did. But better. My father told me I would be able to one day. He said, "Chastity, one day if you work really hard and embrace that wonderful gift you have, you too can be great. You're unique no matter what anybody says. Promise me that no matter what you'll be yourself and follow the road that was meant for you." And every time I would reply:

"I promise daddy."

Nothing could have every prepared me for his death. My mother told me he was sick. But I had faith. Naïve childish faith that he would pull through and still be here. I prayed that he would still be here in the morning and mommy would stop crying. On his death bed my father looked at me through his big blurred hazel eyes and whispered; "Chastity, my baby girl, do you remember that promise you made me? I want you to tell me you'll keep that promise one last time. You're a special girl Chas, I love you." And I replied:

"I love you too daddy, I promise."


	2. Where's Criss

"Hello second family!" Yelled the pink haired girl from the door which she had just opened.

"Good morning Ross," My mother spoke from the kitchen. "How is your mother?"

"Fine," Said the pink haired girl before she jumped over the couch and landed beside me. "What cha watching?"

"Mindfreak." I said staring at the television.

"Really? I didn't know you watched this show." She grabbed the bag of skittles out of my hand. I glanced over at her and rolled my eyes.

"Well, Ross, I do. You've heard of it? Give me back my skittles."

"Heard of it?" She asked handing me back the multi-colored snack of the gods. "Criss Angel is my brother." I knew I only knew her mother and that she had brothers but never met them.

"I'm sorry but let me get this straight; Criss Angel is your brother."

"Yeah."

"And why am I supposed to believe that?"

"Because he's in town and I came over here to get you so that I can bring you over there to meet him, because you haven't met any of my brothers." She said still watching television and eating some skittles she had taken out of the bag. I just stared at her in disbelief.

"Well then why the hell are we still here?" I asked. She looked back at me and shrugged. I grabbed the remote ad jumped up pulling her with me. "Mom we're going to Ross's." I yelled to her grabbing my hoodie off the coat rack. Luckily I had been wearing shoes. I rushed out the door with Ross following struggling with her hoodie. She stopped to put it on. I grabbed her arm as soon as she did and began to run towards her house.

"Chas, um, can you please slow down!" She yelled at me.

"Ross, um, NO!" We ran the rest of the way and stopped in front of the white house. I grew nervous. I almost didn't want to go in, maybe I could just walk back to my house right now.

"I didn't RUN all this way for you to stop in front of the door grow to nervous to go in and walk all the way back to your house." Wow she knows me well. She noticed me not moving and grabbed my hand pulling me up the walkway and stairs then into the house. "Hello where is everybody?"

"Kitchen!" A chorus of voices called. We walked through the living area and into the kitchen. Ross's mom and two other men were in there. They looked familiar but neither of them were Criss.

"Where's Criss?" Ross asked.

"He went to the store he should be back any minute." Mrs. Sarantakos told us. "Hello Chastity." She smiled.

"Hi Mrs. Sarantakos." I said shyly.

"Chas, this is my brothers Costa and JD." Ross introduced us. "Guys this is Chastity." We shook hands.

"Who missed me?" We heard someone yell from the door.


	3. How do you know my father?

"Who missed me?" We heard someone yell form the door.

"Criss!" Ross exclaimed excitedly running to the door giving him a hug.

"It was a rhetorical question, Ross." He laughed. "And besides I saw you only 20 minutes ago."

"What I can't miss my favorite older brother even if I only saw him 20 minutes ago?" Ross asked.

"Since when is Criss your favorite brother?" JD asked jokingly. "I thought I was."

"No I thought I was!" Costa said joining in the joke.

"I've never had boys fighting over me." Ross said. "To bad it's just my brothers." I laughed shaking my head.

"Just your brothers?" Criss asked looking down at her. "I'm Criss fckng Angel. People would kill for me to be their big brother."

"I would to Criss." She said hugging him again.

"Ross, aren't you forgetting something?" JD said pointing in my direction. Ross stared at him for a moment and looked to where he was pointing. Utterly confused. "Chastity!"

"OH!" It took her a minute and an explanation. She grabbed Criss's arm and dragged him into the kitchen. "Criss, Chastity, Chastity, Criss; well now that everyone knows each other I must skip off to get my camera so I can take pictures of the happiest day of my best friend's very dull life." She turned and left.

"Okay then." Criss said staring at the place that his sister had just been standing. "Well hi! It's nice to meet you. You're the first friend I've ever met of Ross's."

"Hi, it's nice to meet you also." I said keeping all the fan girl excitement in my head. And believe me it was hard; not only was my idol standing in front of me but the screaming was giving me a migraine.

"I'm sorry but do you mind me asking your name? Ross, as I'm sure you know, has a tendency to talk fast." He laughed. I giggled and nodded.

"Of course I don't mind, Chastity Freeman." His smile faded slowly but noticeably. I was a little taken aback by this.

"Freeman?" He asked.

"Yeah," I said.

"Any relation to a Charles Freeman?"

"Yeah, he was my father." I answered truthfully. Confusion etched all over his face. "Did you know my father?"

"Yeah, um," He said running a hand threw his thick hair. He bit his lip in thought. He glanced back into the hall way. Then I realized we had been alone this whole time. "Would you mind taking a walk with me?" he looking back at me. I nodded my head brimming with confusion. We walked out the back door into the cold New York weather.

"So Mr. Angel-"

"Criss." He corrected.

"So, Criss, why did you ask me on this walk?" I said trying again.

"I want to ask you a few questions."

"Okay…"

"Have you ever seen my show?"

"Um, yes," I said making my confusion over flow onto the cold sidewalk getting my feet wet. "I watch it all the time."

"When ever you see me do a trick what do you feel?"

"Excuse me?" I asked my shins and knees now completely submersed.

"When ever you see me do a trick, one using real magic not stunts, do you ever feel…um,"

"A magnetic pull that makes me want to learn how you do it and teach myself how so that I can one day be as great as my father was?"

"Yeah."

"All the time." I said nodding slightly. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Shoot."

"How do you know my father?"


	4. Just Like Magic

"How do you know my father?" I asked as we stepped into the local park.

"Your father and my father used to be good friends," Criss started slowly. "One summer my dad took me to a cabin on the lake,"

"Let me guess;" I interrupted. "My great grandfather Charles's cabin?"

"Yeah," He said quietly as we stepped into the old abandoned playground. A thin layer of snow covered the ground making it seem colder than it really was. It was eerily dark out; even though it was only about four in the afternoon. The swings swayed in the wind unoccupied; I stopped, remembering when my father would take me here and push me on the swings when I was a child. I soon became submersed in memories; the snow started to melt and golden leaves fell silently around my childish playing…

_"I want to go higher daddy!" I would yell._

_"Okay!" He would laugh and push me more. "Someday you'll be able to get higher without my help and then you won't need your old man."_

_"Daddy! Don't be silly I'll all ways need you to push me!" I giggled. He would smile and I now know that he was hiding a secret from me. I can see it in his eyes as he watches me on the swing. He was trying to protect me._

_"Daddy! I want to go on the slide!" I yelled. He smiled wider and stopped_

_the swing. I jumped down and ran to the green slide. Laughing all the way up the stairs. "Daddy, Daddy! Catch me!" He always would. Then I ran to the jungle gym. I always loved climbing up the latter and have the feeling of (almost) hovering in the air. I laughed moving to the next bar; but my hand slipped and I landed on my knee scraping it. My father rushed to my side as tear started to stain my face. He smiled lifting my hands that had clutched the wound._

_"Oh that's nothing my little Chas can't handle." He said softly. He placed his right hand over my knee and kissed my forehead. When he picked his hand back up the cut was gone. "There, all gone!"_

_"Just like magic! Thank you daddy!" I smiled and hugged him. "I love you; you're the best daddy in the world!"_

_"Well, you're the best daughter in the world!" He told me picking my small form up. "Why don't we get home and have some ice cream?" _

_"Okay!" I said wrapping my little arms around his neck. _

I watched as my father carried me as a child out of the park. The leaves started to blow away as the snow started to fall again. Dark clouds began to loom overhead and drift down over me. They were suffocating. I started to loose my breath quickly as I tried not to breath in the toxic clouds. Consciousness was escaping me…

"Chastity!" I heard in the distance. "Chastity, come on wake up!"

"Wake up?" I asked. "But I'm not sleeping!"

"Come on, come on!" The voice said.

"Hello? Who are you?!" I asked. "Can you hear me?!"

"Chastity, come on girl, wake up!"

"I told you before I'm not sleeping!" I told the voice. "At least I don't think

so." I looked around to see the same old park covered in snow. Then I saw Criss kneeling on the ground. I walked closer.

"Chastity! Come on wake up!" The voice said sound closer. I reached

Criss and saw myself on the ground next to him. "Why the hell is it taking you this long to wake up!" The voice was right in front of me coming from Criss.

"Chastity, wake up!" My eyes snapped open. My body was cold but my

blood ran hot. "Thank god." Criss said from above me. I blinked a few times trying to figure out what had happened.

"Criss, what happened?" I asked slowly sitting up. He quickly helped me sit up straight.

"I think from the look of it you had a very powerful flashback." He said. I crossed my legs together.

"What do you mean, from the look of it?" I asked looking him in the eye.

"Well, you spaced out so bad I couldn't get your attention and then you passed out. I didn't dare move you." He said feeling my forehead. "Your warm we should probably get you back. Can you stand?" I just stared at him for a moment to shocked to say anything. He helped me to my feet; I felt like the ground was shaking. Criss supported me all the way back to his house.

Dear Reader,

Kind of a bad ending. No really bad ending. I am sorry I haven't put one up for awhile. And I'm also sorry this doesn't make much sense. If it does please tell me. I need to know I'm getting my story across right.

Love,

MV


End file.
